


Love Makes A Family

by NeverlandAwaitsUs



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Adoption, Alternate Universe, F/M, florist!Killian, single parent
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-03
Updated: 2015-02-15
Packaged: 2018-03-10 08:23:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3283556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NeverlandAwaitsUs/pseuds/NeverlandAwaitsUs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Killian Jones is Storybrooke's florist and single father to his son Henry. After his wife passed away briefly after the adoption, he raised the boy on his own, never finding the right words to tell him the truth. He's kept the adoption secret for just a little too long, which starts a chain reaction he could have never seen coming.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"Pancakes?", the still sleepy male voice echoed through the apartment, only to be answered with a much younger one.

"Yep! Flowers?", he asked, getting back a chuckle as an answer, followed by an "Aye!"

This was a typical morning conversation between these too. Killian would ask what Henry wanted for breakfast and Henry would ask in return if he should care for the flowers while his father was cooking. They actually didn't even need to talk about it – their routine was clear – and yet, they did it every morning.

Killian strolled into the kitchen that was open to the living room, watching how Henry was watering the plants they had in their little cottage while he started to make their breakfast.

Their life was simple, really. They shared a three-room cottage – two downstairs, one upstairs – the living room was connected with the kitchen, and they also shared a big bathroom for such a small cottage outside of the sleepy town. But they didn't really care much about it because what they had around the cottage was much better. There was a forest and a sea behind their yard and they could see the clocktower from their porch.

They had built several hideouts in the woods during the years, including a huge treehouse, which was their best so far, where they had been hiding from monsters, bad guys, and sometimes even aliens as soon as Henry was old enough to build things. It warmed Killian's heart to think about how great his son had been growing up, even without a woman in their lifes. Milah had died before Henry could remember her so he had to use pictures and stories but the more time had passed, the less the lad asked and they had settled down on the silent agreement that they wouldn't need a woman here.

Killian had noticed that when Henry needed female advice he would ask his teacher, Mary Margret Blanchard. She was a lovely woman and he didn't really mind. He had seen how big his boy smiled after class when he had picked him up from school. Normally Henry rode his bike, but sometimes Killian took the time to pick him up, mostly when it was raining, snowing, or storming. In those cases, the bike would either stay at school or lay in the bed of Killian's pickup.

"Done!" Henry said with a huge grin and put down the watering can, looking towards Killian, who was turning around with the pan in his hand.

"Same," He grinned at the boy and watched how he sat down while Killian put the last pancakes on a plate before moving to the wooden table He smiled at the kid in front of him who didn't look like him but was so much like him anyway.

* * *

_"I'm sorry, but you will never be able to have kids, Mrs. Jones." The doctor's voice was calm but inside of Killian was raging a storm when he heard the words, placing a hand on his wife's shoulder immediately. After a few seconds Milah started to sob, burying her face in her hands and he pulled her into a hug, pressing her against his firm chest._

_They had been trying for so long and now they knew the reason. They had been expecting that it might be something like that but never really believed in it until now. After their marriage all they wanted was a child on their own, to start their own little family but it seems that nature would deny them this luck._

_"Please, don't hate me," she sobbed against his shoulder and he huffed, shaking his head and only pulled her closer._

_"I could never. It's not your fault." He shushed her and stroked her back up and down, trying to soothe her but it was in vain, she just kept crying. The doctor had left the room to give them some time._

_Ever since they were a thing she had talked to him about kids, one or two and he had always loved the idea but now? Now that dream was crumbling to dust._

_On their way out the doctor stopped him and he frowned, sending Milah to the car._

_"What is it?" he asked, his forehead in frowns until the other man pressed him a few pamphlets into his hand._

_"You might think about adoption."_

* * *

"Dad!" Henry said loudly causing Killian to look up in confusion.

"What? Sorry, I was thinking," he mumbled as an answer before he started to eat his breakfast, getting a chuckle from Henry.

"Yeah, I noticed. I just wanted to remind you that you need to sign my papers for the museums trip. You promised." The boy patted on a sheet of paper he had put in front of the table while Killian had been lost in thought.

He laughed at the boy and grabbed a pen from the counter. Henry had been excited for this trip for days while other kids had been groaning and grumbling about visiting a museum. He liked this kind of stuff.

The man read over the paper quickly before he signed it and folded it, shoving it back to Henry while nipping on his coffee. "There you go," he said with a grin when he saw the happiness in the lad's eyes. No matter how bad he felt from time to time, seeing his boy happy always cheered him up like nothing else. Henry was his everything, and, without him, Killian would probably drown in loneliness.

"Now get your stuff before you're late," he reminded his son with a glance to the clock. Henry shoved the last pieces of breakfast into his mouth before jumping up and running into his room, getting a brief laugh from Killian. He would never understand why someone would give up such a great kid or, really, any kid at all. Children are wonderful, sometimes stressful, but wonderful.

A gift.

* * *

_"You would really want to adopt?" Milah asked him in disbelief when he had told her about the doctor's idea a few days later when she had calmed down. He just nodded with a small smile on his lips. He would do everything for her and he wanted his own little family too._

_"Aye, if you want that," he answered and before he could say some more, she was already throwing her arms around his neck, pulling him into a kiss while tears were pricking behind her eyes, but this time, tears of happiness._

_"Shall we look at the pamphlets and maybe the internet together? For information?" He didn't even get an answer, she just grabbed his hand and dragged him over to the couch to sit down in front of their laptop. He gave her the leaflets while he was looking through several websites that would give them information about how adoptions worked and where they could go to get their questions answered._

* * *

Killian took the last sip of his coffee before cleaning the table right in time. Henry came downstairs, fully dressed and backpack over his shoulder. He had the only room upstairs. When Killian had got this place for him and the boy, the upstairs room had been an attic but he wanted to make sure to give the lad his own little place so he had spent months to turn it into a child's room. After Milah's death he just had to get out of their old place and decided to move into this sleepy town and he didn't regret his decision at all.

Some people of this town had been suspicious of him in the beginning, being a single dad and all but after a couple of weeks they had warmed up to him and his son and turned out quite nice and helpful. He got many offers as a florist and he took Henry with him as he was too young to leave him alone. After making some friends, for example with the lady who owned the diner and her granddaughter, they had offered him to watch Henry for a couple of hours so that he could get some time on his own. In the beginning, he had hated to leave the baby behind but he also noticed how much he actually needed the alone time.

He had always been there for his son, had changed his diapers, had been around the whole day and night when the baby had been sick and he had been exhausted to often but it had been worth it.

When Henry slipped into his shoes, Killian couldn't help but smile when the memories where flashing in front of his eyes, how this little baby he had taken care of had turned into this young man in front of him and he couldn't wish for a better child. He was proud to be his father but he also knew that the time would come where he had to tell Henry that he was adopted, that they didn't share the same blood. He just hoped the lad would understand that blood wasn't important if it came to family because family didn't end with blood. It was about love and mutual respect.

"Bye dad!" Henry yelled, almost out of the door before Killian coughed and raised an eyebrow until the boy turned around and smirked at him before running back and hugged his middle.

"That's my boy," he said with a grin on his lips and kissed the top of his head before ruffling the boy's hair as soon as he let go of him. "Say ‚hi' to Mary Margret for me."

"Will do. Don't forget Granny's flowers!" With that, the brown-haired kid was out of the door and on his way to school.

Killian just laughed softly and shook his head. "How could I?" He just knew that if Granny didn't get her flowers, she would be pissed at him, in a playful way, but he had learned to fear the old woman when she was angry. It was rumored among the townspeople that she had a crossbow, and he wouldn't want to be the first one to find out.

* * *

_The day they had called them from the office and had told them that their application was accepted and they could adopt a child, was probably the happiest day in both of their lives. Killian had been so happy he had grinned the whole drive while Milah had been trying to sit calmly in her seat._

_But now they were here, waiting for the baby. The man had asked them a few more questions but nothing too bad until he had confirmed that they would be able to get a child. It was a closed adoption through, they wouldn't be able to contact the birth parents and Killian had been wondering why it was closed but didn't ask more questions._

_When the nurse finally brought the baby boy inside, he couldn't help but smile at the small creature. Milah took him into her arms and a single tear was rolling down her face while talking to the little man. Killian chewed nervously on his bottom lip, she was great with kids and he was so happy that everything had worked out, after all this weeks of waiting and hoping._

_"Do you want to hold him?," she asked him with a huge smile on her face and he looked up from the baby to her eyes, scratching behind his ear._

_"I'm not really sure if I—" He had no chance to finish that sentence because his wife had already placed the baby in his arms and he froze for a second before he started to rock the tiny human back and forth slowly. „He is so beautiful."_

_"Do you have a name for him yet?," the clerk asked them while watching the whole scene and Killian looked towards Milah. They had a lot of discussions about names but in the end, her choice had won._

_"Henry," she said with a soft smile on her lips and Killian nodded._

_He had finally become a father and he swore to himself that he would be a better one than his own._

* * *

Killian grabbed his axe and went outside to chop some wood for their fireplace.

He prefered the warmth of a fireplace more than a heater, and sitting together with Henry in the winter, having a crackling, warm fire while playing video games was the best thing he could imagine.

Henry loved those games and Killain couldn't resist to join him sometimes, relaxing from work and the day. It happened quite often that both of them fell asleep on the couch while playing. He mostly woke up a couple of hours later and carried Henry into his bedroom but sometimes he would just stay on the couch with his son, covering them with a blanket and turning the TV off before falling back to sleep.

He chopped the wood, watching a train pass by before he carried it inside, placing it next to the fireplace before he moved into the greenhouse that was connected to the cottage. He had built it himself for his job and was rather proud of the outcome. All the flowers were inside there so he wouldn't have to do his work inside of the house.

A quick glance over the list with orders told him what Granny would like to have today and he was happy that he did most of the flowers yesterday already with Henry's helping hand. When he still lived back in Chicago he had his own little flower shop and it was also the place where he had met Milah for the first time. She had been coming back, in the begining only once a week and then almost every day before they finally had a real conversation and he invited her for a coffee.

After her death, he closed the shop, grabbed all he had and moved over to Storybrooke with his son. Opening a new shop wasn't one of his options anymore, he wouldn't have enough time for Henry, so he decided to become an independant florist, a thing this town didn't have until he came along.

Henry loved helping him whenever he could. He was a curious boy with many questions that seemed to absord any kind of information and it didn't take long to teach him the differences of the flowers, their names, their habitat and things like that. Killian loved spending time with his son, no matter what they were doing. Hiding from monsters in the treehouse, finishing a job or simply playing games or having dinner.

He was just glad that Henry wasn't one of those kids who stopped caring about their parents as soon as they got older. They only had each other and the boy understood that. Sure, they had friends in town but in the end, it was only the two of them. They were a team, as Henry liked to call say. One more reason why he was afraid to tell the lad the truth about his adoption, but he knew it had to be soon. If he got into full puberty the chance that he would run away or do something stupid was way too high and he would blame himself for the rest of his life if something happened to the boy.

Killian still hadn't stopped blaming himself for Milah's death.

* * *

_"Watch out!" She yelled, but it was too late, the truck already crashed into the side of their car, pushing them down the hill._

_It had only been three months after the adoption of Henry. The beginning had been hard, getting up in the middle of the night but they managed it and as soon as they had gotten used to it, it was a wonderful thing to have a little family. He had been such a proud father and Milah had been such a good mother. On the day of the accident they had been out to visit some of her friends and on their way back it happened._

_It had been raining and it was dark and he actually had no explanation why it happened. The truck just crashed into their side and everything faded into black. Only the cries of his boy woke him up again. He was in pain, everything was hurting and blood was running over his face. He looked to his side to Milah, shaking her shoulder but no response. He tried to open the door but it was stuck and he needed all his strenght to open it, hurting his shoulder in the progress._

_"Shhh lad, it's going to be alright," he whispered as he got outside, taking Henry from the backseat and looking over him with a quick look but he didn't seem to be hurt. He placed him on the side and could already hear sirens from the top of the hill, someone had already called the ambulance. He sprinted over to the other side of the car, pulling Milah out of the car, her face covered with blood. Only then he noticed that he could barely move his left hand, groaning in pain._

_"Love, come on. Wake up." He shook her a few times but she didn't respond and he noticed that she wasn't breathing. Panic was raising inside of him, his head started to spin and everything that happened afterwards was just a blur._

_People were coming down the hill, the ambulance had arrived and they were carrying Milah away while Killian just picked up his son out of the car seat, rocking him back and forth, like he had done the first day he'd held him in his arms, before getting into the ambulance himself._

_It was only a couple of hours later when they told him in the hospital that Milah hadn't made it._

* * *

After finishing the flowers, he packed them into the back of his truck before driving into town and stopping in front of the small diner. It always felt like everyone came here, given the fact that this was the only diner, almost like the center of the town. Quite the cozy place, if he was honest and he liked spending time here. Granny always gave Henry a free hot cocoa with cinnamon and Killian could always shake the head at the old woman's behavior. She loved that kid quite a lot, had seen how he had grown up during all these years.

(He never told her that he lowered the price for the flowers she bought from him.)

"Hey Killian," Ruby singsonged while she was cleaning some tables outside and he smirked, waving at her before lifting the boxes with the flowers out.

"Into the back as usual?" He asked her and she nodded before she kept cleaning the tables. They had become great friends during all this time. In the beginning she had kept hitting on him and he wasn't completely reluctant to it but he always had Milah in the back of his head and he never took the opportunity, only always thought about his son.

He made his way inside and saw Granny already waiting there with a small smile on her lips.

"Hello my boy," she said and patted him on the cheek like she would be his own grandma.

Killian just laughed softly and shook his head. "Hey Granny." He placed the flowers to the usual spot, Ruby would put them out later. He wiped his hand on his clothes to get the dirt off before turning back to Granny who was already handing him the money.

"How is Henry today?" She asked him with a smile while he took the money and put it into the backpockets of his pants.

"He's great. They have this museum trip today, and, you know how he is," he answered with a smile on his face. The kids were probably still in the bus on the way to Portland's museum. Storybrooke had its own, but it was rather small and he had been there with Henry a thousand times.

"Oh yeah, he told me about it. He was so excited."

Killian just nodded in answer and was about to turn around when the old woman placed a hand on his arm and he stopped. "Come inside, just for some coffee. Take a break."

He opened his mouth to say something but when he saw the look on the woman's face he knew that every resistance was in vain, so he nodded and followed her into the main room, shrugging out of his jacket and sitting down in one of the booths.

Granny brought him a cup of hot coffee and smiled at him before she returned to the other customers. While nipping on his drink, he took out his phone to see if he had any new messages but only one missed call from David.

David Nolan had been very suspicious of him in the beginning, being the sheriff of this town and everything, but, in the end, they had become something like best friends. He was also the boyfriend of Mary Margret, and Killian already knew what this call would be about, so he called back and only had to wait a few seconds until the other man answered.

"Killian! Thank god, I thought you died or something. Listen, I need your help!"

He just laughed to the almost desperate tone in the voice of his mate before he took another sip from his coffee.

"I'm sitting at Granny's, come down here for a while? I'm sure nothing is going to happen in the station while you're gone."

For a moment the other one was silent before he agreed and hung up the phone, appearing in the diner only a few minutes later, sliding into the booth, sitting opposite of him.

"Ok, here," David said and pulled out his phone, showing him two pictures of rings. „Which one do you think she will like more? I can't decide and the woman in the shop wasn't very helpful."

Killian laughed before he leaned closer to look at the rings. The blonde man had been planning to propose for quite a while now but he never got the balls to actually do it until he had told Killian about it and he had immediately kicked his ass but now he also had to play the helping hand whenever David needed help. He could still remember how nervous he had been back then when he had proposed to Milah and how relief shot through his body the moment she had said yes.

"The right one," he simply answered before taking another sip of his coffee, poking at the screen with his free hand where the angry scar was visible now that he was only sitting here in a shirt. He didn't put any effort in hiding anymore, not after all these years he had been living here.

* * *

_"Your guardian angel did all it could do. You're lucky you didn't lose your hand," the doctor told him while bandaging his wrist._

_It had been several weeks since the accident and a couple of operations later that he was fully able to use his hand again but the angry scar would always be a reminder of what had happened. In the beginning they had told him they couldn't save his hand, then they said he wouldn't be able to move it anymore, another doctor said he may only be able to move one to three fingers but now, now he was able to move his full hand like nothing had happened._

_Just a routine check-up in the hospital, Henry sleeping at the front desk while the nurse was watching him. He had no idea how he would have been supposed to take proper care of the boy with only one hand, it would have been a nightmare._

_"Aye, that she did," he said with a sad smile on his lips, knowing that Milah was somewhere above them, watching him and the little boy and that she would protect them. It was a stupid, childish thought but it was soothing him in a way the words of doctors and friends couldn't._

_"You can take off the bandage in around three days and should be fine. In case it starts hurting again you just come back, alright?"_

_Killian simply nodded and got up from his chair, running his fingers over the bandage for a moment before saying goodbye to the doc and returning to the front desk to pick up Henry._

_"It's still a wonder that the little man didn't get a scratch," the nurse said and Killian nodded. She knew the story about what happend, had been there when the little family came in that night. While Milah had died and he had gotten this scar on his wrist, the baby hadn't gotten a scratch and he thanked all the gods in the world for that._

_Henry was all he had left now._

* * *

"You think so? I mean, what if she likes the left one more?" David asked anxiously and looked up and down between the phone and Killian's face.

The brown haired man just laughed and shook his head, taking another sip from his coffee. „Listen, mate. If you propose to her, she won't really care what ring you chose. She will love it, no matter what because it's you and she's crazy in love just like you are with her. Make it sweet, make it romantic and just give her the ring." He smiled at his friend, hoping he would understand the message.

David looked at him for a long moment before he nodded slowly and started to grin for a few seconds before his features showed panic again.

"Oh god, I have to go! What if someone got the ring already?!" He exclaimed and Killian hushed him. If Ruby would hear them, Mary Margret would know the whole thing within seconds. David clasped a hand over his mouth and nodded.

"Keep calm, mate. It's going to be okay." He smiled at his friend and got a nod back. Before the blonde man left he patted Killian on his shoulder and went outside to the parked sheriff's car.

Killian just chuckled to himself and shook his head slightly before emptying the cup and getting up, putting a few bucks on the table. "I'm going. Bye Granny", he said and waved towards the counter but the old woman just waved towards her and he sighed slightly, she never wanted to let him go.

"What is it?" He asked and tilted his head slightly when she put a big box in front of him.

"I have some lasagna left from the lunch special. I thought you and your boy might want to have something warm tonight," she answered with a warm smile on her lips.

Killian was at loss of words for a moment before he smiled back at her. She did this often, giving him the leftovers of lunch specials or things like that, always without wanting something in return and no matter how often she did it, he was always grateful. Sure, he could cook himself and did it but to know that there are kind people who liked to help a single father was always a nice thing.

"Thank you so much. Henry loves your lasagna," he said and grabbed the box before he thanked her again and got outside into his car, driving home.

The rest of the day passed slowly and he kept himself busy with some more flower orders before he took a break and was watching some TV until he heard the front door. He glanced at the clock and smirked when Henry came inside, throwing his backback in the corner and jumping over the back of the couch right next to him.

"It was so cool!," he said, slightly out of breath as he just got here with his bike and Killian laughed, ruffling his hair.

"Breath, lad, and then you can tell me."

For some time, they sat on the couch and Killian listened to Henry's stories about history and art, before Killian went over to the kitchen to get the lasagna out of the fridge, putting it into the microwave. The boy also got up and started to set the table without Killian having to ask and he smirked at him because the kid didn't stop talking while carrying plates and cutlery.

Killian took the lasagna out of the microwave and filled their plates, watching how Henry's eyes got bigger at the sight of Granny's lasagna but he was still completely into talking about his trip. Only when they both sat down and had their drinks, he finished telling every little detail he had seen today.

"Sounds like the hell of a trip, lad. I'm glad you enjoyed it," Killian said, grinning as he shoved the first piece of lasagna into his mouth, groaning happily at the taste.

"Oh, and Mary Margret wants to talk to you at Granny's tomorrow after school. Not sure what it is about," Henry said and shrugged while eating. The lad only called her Ms. Blanchard when he was at school.

Killian frowned for a moment, trying to figure out what his best friend's soon-to-be wife would want from him. "Did you do something?" He asked teasingly and Henry shook his head quickly before they both started to laugh.

He took his phone out and texted Mary Margret quickly when and why before returning back to his food, telling Henry about his day that wasn't all too interesting. When his phone buzzed and he read the message he frowned slightly.

_'Around 4pm, it's about Henry. Nothing bad, don't worry.'_

"Bad news?" Henry asked and tried to lean over the table to read the message but Killian just held a hand out so the kid was pressing his forehead against his palm for a second before he pulled back grinning.

"Nope, everything is fine. Oh hey, Pirates of the Carribean is on later, I figured we could watch it," he said, looking at his son with a grin who just started to nod.

"Pirates over everything!" Henry exlaimed and grinned at his father who grinned back at him.

"Aye!"

They had seen that movie plenty of times but they always ended up joking and laughing about the adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow. When Henry was younger, the time after a pirate movie had always ended up in Killian being the Captain and the boy being his first mate, going on adventures. Sitting in the bathtub and sailing the seven seas or sword fighting each other with wooden toys Killian had got them a while ago.

But today, Henry was dead tired as soon as the movie ended and he all but collapsed in his bed. Killian draped the blanket over his son and gave him a soft kiss to his head before closing the door behind him with a soft sigh.

Even though he had Henry, in the nights when his son was safe in his bed he couldn't shake the feeling that he was lonely.

He still missed Milah and he had overcome her death a few years ago but she didn't stay out of his mind. The single mothers of Henry's classmates looked at him quite often as he was the only single dad in town now that Jefferson was from the market and they were impressed that he was able to handle all this so great.

But, so far, he hadn't let any other woman get close to him, his son was always his first priority. The feeling of wanting someone to hold came around from time to time; he missed the feeling of waking up next to someone.

He quickly shook his head to get the thoughts out before he walked downstairs to get a shower and some sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day wasn't very different from the one Killian had yesterday or the days before, they were mostly all the same. Henry would be at Grace's this afternoon, so he would have enough time to talk to Mary Margaret.

He was already sitting at the counter of Granny's, nipping on some coffee when she came inside.

"You!" she said with a furious look on her face and he literally jumped up from his chair, holding his hands up in defence, not even knowing what he had done but he was quite sure that it was his fault.

"Me?" he asked in confusion.

"Youuuuuu!" she repeated herself and walked towards him, poking her forefinger into his chest a few times. "You didn't tell me! You sneaky son of a bitch!"

For a moment he just blinked at her before his gaze wandered down to her hand where he could see the ring on her finger. Damn, David went straight for it, apparently. His eyes went back to hers and he grinned, taking his hands down.

"Well, who am I to spoil a surprise?" A smug grin settled on his face and he took his coffee, going over to one of the booths, hoping she would follow him. He sat down with a huff but still grinned at her when she joined him.

"You could have warned me?" she mumbled under her breath and he placed the cup on the table before putting his elbows on it, head in his hands.

"So you said yes?" he asked with a grin, already knowing the answer. Given the fact that Ruby didn't tell him as soon as he had walked in, he figured that the brunette didn't know yet. So if he had to get away from Mary Margaret, he would just say something about a marriage loudly enough for Ruby to hear and she wouldn't leave Mary Margaret alone until she spilled all the details.

"Of course I did," the woman answered with a small blush on her cheeks. "But back to the reason why I'm here. Listen, the new topic for Henry's class is going to be family and some genetic stuff fitting to the kid's ages. You know, family trees and the like. And you still haven't told him yet. I…just wanted to give you a warning, in case the class is going to trigger his interest. I would hate for him to find out on his own."

Killian gulped visibly when he heard the news. He knew that the time would come where he had to tell his son the truth about the adoption but he never expected it to be so soon. One thing he never wanted was that Henry would find it out of his own, it only hurt me, felt more like lying. Mary Margaret, David, Ruby and Granny where the only ones in town who knew that Henry was adopted and he was glad that the black-haired woman warned him before it could end in a huge disaster.

"I mean, you don't have to tell him, of course. But I guess he'll ask questions about his family soon to participate or maybe one of the other kids will say something." She reached across the table to take his hand in hers and he pushed his tongue against the inside of his cheek, nodding slightly.

"I'll have to think about it. I mean, I want to tell him, but…there are no right moments for these kind of things I guess," he said with a sigh and looked down, feeling how she squeezed his hand.

"I wouldn't worry too much. He adores you more than anything, he will understand." She let go of his hand and stood up, holding her arms out. He laughed softly and got up too, pulling her into an embrace. He was glad that she was just an empathic woman, she understood his worries and fears.

"You can do it, Killian. I can push the curriculum back a little to give you some time to think about what to say but not too long. A week at most."

His jaw clenched and he closed his eyes for a moment before she pulled back and he nodded. "That will be enough, thank you so much."

She nodded and placed a kiss on his cheeks before she took her things, explaining that she had a date with David and couldn't stay any longer. Killian understood and sent her out with a laugh before sitting back into his booth with a sigh, sinking down a little. The last time he had been that afraid of something were the moment when he didn't know if Milah would make it and the months after her death when he hadn't know how to handle his life anymore.

Telling his son, the only person he had left, that he wasn't his real father would be such a huge step that he wished that Milah was with him, that he hadn't to go through his alone. How did you tell your kid that they're not really yours? What did you say? How do you react to their reaction?

* * *

_"Are you planning on telling him right from the start?" the blonde woman asked while rocking the baby in her arms while Killian started down at the bandage of his wrist._

_"I don't know," he mumbled, running his fingers over the fabric. It would come off soon, he would be free. When he lifted his gaze he met the small smile of Tink, his best friend. "Milah and I always wanted to." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair._

_"But you changed your mind?" she asked and frowned slightly when he nodded._

_"Aye. I mean of course he deserves the truth but…bloody hell, I don't know!" He spoke louder than he wanted to, lifting his hands in despair. His eyes widened when he heard how Henry started to cry and he felt bad immediately, watching how Tink just started to rock him a little bit more._

_"I'll move away," he suddenly said and Tink's eyes widened at his words._

_"What? Why? All your friends are here, we can help you." The desperation in her voice placed a sad smile on his lips. He knew that his friends would be always here for him and his son, would always help them but the memories hurt too much._

_"I know and I'm grateful for that but I can't stay here. Everything reminds me of her. The house, the shop, the diner around the corner. I see her wherever I go, Tink. It's driving me nuts. I need a fresh start." He looked at her with pleading eyes, hoping for her to understand._

_A silence settled between these too for a long moment before she nodded with a small smile on her lips. She understood._

* * *

He groaned and took a long sip from his coffee, thinking about changing it into rum but then he wouldn't be able to drive back and he also had to pick up Henry from Grace's.

For a couple of minutes he sat in his booth, chatting with Ruby and Leroy who came by before finishing his coffee and going out to his car to pick up Henry.

Killian stopped the car in front of Jefferson's house and honked the car horn to give Henry a sign that he was here. Seconds later the boy came out of the front door, waving to Grace and Jefferson before getting into the car.

"Hey, Dad," he said with a huge grin on his lips and Killian raised an eyebrow.

"Why so happy? Did you get a goodbye kiss?" he teased and Henry opened his eyes wide, looking out of the window when the car started to move but he wasn't able to hide the small blush.

"No, of course not," the boy mumbled and Killian laughed. The little man and Grace had grown up together, and had always been best friends.

After a couple of minutes in silence, Henry turned in his seat towards him and chewed on his bottom lip. "Dad?" he asked carefully and the man turned his head briefly to look at his son before looking back at the road.

"Aye?" His grip tightened a little around the wheel, not quite sure what to expect when the voice of the boy sounded like this.

"What do you do when you like a girl?"

In the next second Killian had stepped on the brakes, stopping the car immediately as he looked over, almost in shock. "What?" he asked in confusion and could only see how his son's face was turning into a deep red.

Killian's confusion was quick replaced with a huge grin and he leaned closer to Henry, wiggling his eyebrows, watching how the red turned only a bit darker.

"Oh god, dad! Stop!" the boy said with a laugh and tried to shove him back a little. „And no I don't want The Talk now. I simply want to know how…" Henry drifted off, not quite sure how to describe what he wanted.

"How to win her affection?" Killian asked, still grinning at the younger one next to him. He had expected that Henry liked Grace quite a bit but not that much. Jefferson would probably kill him though.

The brown haired boy nodded and Killian tipped against the wheel with his fingers for a moment before he looked back at the other one. "Well, give her flowers. Make her smile, make her laugh. Tease her just a little bit. Just be around her and show her what a great guy you are."

He couldn't stop smiling through the whole time he spoke, remembering how he had followed his own advice all those years ago. Flowers were the key to every girl's heart he always said, good thing he was a florist.

Henry looked at him with big eyes, trying to keep the information and probably already planning how to use them. Killian's smile turned back into a grin and he leaned over again. "So, about The Talk…" he sing-songed and the boy's face turned red again, turning away from his father to look out of the window.

Killian simply laughed and ruffled his hair before he started to drive again. "I guess we will talk about it when it's time. Just know you can always ask me, okay? And watch out for Jefferson, I would hate for him to rip your head off, at least he might if his new girlfriend can't hold him back."

The lad started to nod but agreed and was deep in thought on their way home. Killian smiled slightly, his baby boy was growing up and he was happy, proud, and terrified at the same time. Growing up meant that he really deserved the whole truth and he only had one week.

The week was filled with David and Mary Margaret making early wedding plans, with Leroy telling the whole town, Granny having way too much leftovers, lots of homework for Henry and a couple of orders for himself. It was quite the exhausting week if he was honest but maybe he used all of this just as an excuse to shove the inevitable conversation back some more.

At first he considered to ask Mary Margaret for some female advice but he backed out, knowing that she would be way too busy with David. He had to do this alone and he had to do it right if he didn't want to lose his son.

Killian decided to tell him today, he just couldn't drag it out anymore. The fear that Henry would find out on his own was growing stronger every day and he would explode if he didn't tell him soon. Henry would always be his son, no matter what.

He drove to school with the truck, wanting to pick the lad up. Sitting on the back of the truck while waiting for the younger one to come out he was greeted by some woman of the town who were also here to pick up their kids. He smiled at them, waving at some of them but never really started a conversation, way too deep in his thoughts on how to explain it to Henry. Everything he had in mind sounded so shitty and he just wanted to bury himself alive.

The bell rang and he looked up from his lap, his eyes searching Henry in the crowd of the kids who were running out of the building into the arms of their parents. He sighed at the view and hoped that the lad would be here soon.

"Dad?" the familiar voice sounded and he turned his head to the side to see Henry standing directly in front of him. How had he missed him coming out? Damn his thoughts were all too heavy right now. "What are you doing here?"

"What does it look like? I'm picking you up!" Killian said, trying to grin as usual while jumping down from the back and taking Henry's bike, putting it inside so they could take it home.

"But you never pick me up when it's sunny" Henry answered in suspicion, raising one of his eyebrows just like Killian did all the time. "Dad, what's wrong?"

Damn that kid for being so perceptive. The blue eyed man scratched behind his ear, his typical mannerism when he was nervous before he closed the truck bed and walked around the car.

"Let's talk about it at home, alright?" He looked at his son pleadingly and the younger one waited for a moment before he nodded and got into the car next to him.

They were silent on the drive home, Killian didn't have any words that wouldn't end up in telling the boy the whole thing in the car. Actually not a bad idea because he couldn't run away while driving. On the other side, he could always jump out and die and as his father, he wouldn't like to cause that. Henry was probably thinking about what was wrong, trying to answer the question on his own.

There were so many voices in his head, telling him to do, how to do it, whispering what he should say to the boy next to him. It felt like crushing the lad's life and he already felt kind of guilty for doing this. It would be easier to simply stay silent about it but he knew that it was wrong.

Liam had kept quiet, back then. Had told him their father had died in an accident and it was only several years later that Killian had found out that the man he had loved so much had just left them in the middle of the night, that he was still alive out there somewhere. It had been weeks before he let Liam talk to him again and today, after his brother's death, he felt horrible for all that wasted time. But the loss of his sibling brought him from Ireland to Chicago where he had Milah. So maybe, just maybe it was the gods playing their sick game with him, maybe it was fate. Or maybe, he was just followed by misfortune but at least he had Henry, his bright spot in his life. And now? Now he was about to lose him, too, with his luck.

While he was driving he prayed to the gods to be gentle on him this time, for Henry to understand why he had kept quiet until now, to understand that he would always be his father, no matter what. Of course he was afraid that the lad would go looking for his real parents, that he would want to replace him, that he would yell 'You're not my father!' into his face.

Just thinking about it hurt.

"Stop doing that, Dad," Henry suddenly said and Killian turned his head, frowning slightly.

"Doing what?" He swallowed like he was just caught in the middle of something and the boy sighed but smiled at him.

"Worrying. You'll only get more wrinkles on your forehead than you already have," the lad answered with a grin and Killian huffed, slapping the boy's back of the head slightly with his hand.

"Oi! No violence, I'm just a kid!" Henry said and held his hand to his head like he was being wounded even through it probably didn't hurt at all.

"Aye, that you are, but you're my kid, so deal with it," Killian said and stuck his tongue out in a teasing way, grinning slightly for the first time since Henry had gotten into the car. He loved their banter, the way they could tease each other, they weren't just father and son but also best friends. He didn't want to lose this.

They arrived at the cottage and Henry walked inside while Killian kept sitting in his seat for a second longer, taking a long breath to calm himself. He was shaking, bloody hell. This was so pathetic but he was afraid to hurt the boy.

He followed his son inside, saw him kneeling on the couch, looking over the back at him with big eyes, literally waiting for him to speak. Killian sighed slightly and chewed on his bottom lip, shifting from one foot to another and scratching the spot behind his ear.

Right when he was about to open his mouth his phone rang and he groaned, shooting the lad an excusing look before he answered his phone, seeing the little picture of David blinking.

"Bad timing, mate", he growled into it and leaned against the wall, running a hand through his hair.

"Hey, are you home? I mean, your truck is there but you're inside the house, right?", the other man asked, not really caring about that Killian was quite annoyed.

"Aye. Why?" He frowned slightly on suspicion and confusion and heard the knocking on the door a second later, noticing that David had hung up on him. Great. This was just great.

He sighed slightly and walked over to the door but looked back at Henry who was still looking at him. "Do you homework first, we talk later, okay buddy?"

The boy simply nodded before he pulled his stuff out of his backpack and Killian opened the door, looking at a grinning David who just walked inside without invitation.

"Bloody hell", Killian muttered under his breath and closed the door behind his best friend, who had both of his hands buried in his pockets and still grinned. "Why are you here?"

"Ah, good that you ask", David said like it was a surprise that Killian was a little taken off guard by the visit. "Okay, just a quick thing, I'm out again in a bit."

The dark haired man raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest while he looked at David, waiting for him to say something.

"Please be my best man?" The voice of the blond was kind of nervous and Killian's eyebrows shot both up in the air, taken even more off guard by this question. Really, the guy had been engaged for about a week now and now he was here and already asked him this kind of question. "I mean, you don't have to. I just thought-"

Before David could speak, Killian put a hand on his shoulder and smiled widely at the other one. "It would be a honor", he said with a stupid little grin tugging at the corner of his eyes and his mate pulled him into a quick but meaningful hug.

"Thanks, Killian," he mumbled and pulled back, looking over to Henry. "Hey kid, do you want to come to the wedding with your dad?"

Henry lifted his head from his homework, grinning towards them and nodding. "Of course! There'll be free food, right?" The cocky grin was almost matching Killian's and all three started to laugh at that.

"Plenty of it!" David said and clapped Killian on the shoulder again before he made his way towards the door. "I'll tell you more information as soon as I get them. I just wanted to be sure that I have the greatest best man alive." With that, he said goodbye to the small Jones family and closed the door behind him.

Killian just laughed and shook his head, running a hand through his hair before walking over to the couch, sitting down next to his son. "Need help?", he asked while he looked over the math formula and into the book that were on the table.

"Nah, I'm good", Henry answered before he put his pen down and shifted on the couch so that he sat in Indian style, looking at Killian. "But you wanted to talk to me, right? Is it something bad?"

The man's heart sank into his stomach at these words and he swallowed hard, not quite sure what to say. David's surprise visit had totally thrown him off and all the words he had placed in his head were gone within a second.

"Or is it a woman?" Henry suddenly asked and Killian widened his eyes a little before he started to laugh and ruffled his boy's hair, shaking his head slightly.

"No, lad, it's not a woman." He never really knew how Henry would like it if he came home with another woman, introducing her to him, given the fact that Henry never had a real mother.

"It's just…" Killian started but paused, taking a deep breath. "You know I had a boat when I was younger, right?" Henry nodded and shifted a little more around, looking at him with curious eyes. "And I figured we could get one for us. Real life pirates and stuff," he finished, laughing softly.

A smile settled on his lips when he saw how big his son's eyes had gotten and how his mouth stood slightly open before he jumped forward, hugging Killian tightly. "That would be awesome!" he exclaimed and pulled back, grinning.

Killian had always had the idea to get another boat, a small ship on his own but he had always put Henry and his wishes first, so they had never spoken about it, not really. But now, that Henry seemed to love the idea it grow on him even more.

"You can teach me how to sail, right?" Henry asked, moving slightly up and down on the couch in excitement.

"That and so much more, lad," Killian answered with a grin, ruffling the boy's hair again before he got up from the couch. "Finish your homework, I'll make dinner."

Henry groaned slightly but turned back around to his papers while Killian moved into the kitchen, putting his head against the fridge for a long moment. He was an idiot, he had been so close to telling him but he chickened out, he was such a coward. Instead of just telling the boy the truth he had just made him another promise that would be meaningless as soon as the lad would find out the truth.

Killian was torn apart inside, telling him or keeping quiet for just a little longer until he had his thoughts straight. It was a bloody nightmare and he had never expected this to be that hard.

* * *

_"Come on, dad!" Henry yelled loudly from the middle of the sea at his young boy who sat there on his rubber raft in the middle of the lake behind their house. The weather had been perfect since the second they had woken up and the boy had wanted to play pirates._

_"Almost there, lad!" Killian called back and pulled his shirt over his head, only covered in his swim trunks now before he jumped into the water, shivering a little when he made contact with the cold water._

_"Look out, Captain! There are sharks!" The man turned around like he would out for the animals, acting like they would be in the open ocean instead of just a lake._

_He immediately swam faster before he reached the raft and crawled inside, carefully not to turn it over when his weight filled it. Henry giggled and put a toy head on Killian's head, clearly the captain's head with a skull in front of it._

_The boy himself was wearing an eye patch while holding the oar in his hand, grinning up to his father._

_"So mate, what are we going to do today?" he asked the boy in front of him and ran a hand through his now wet hair._

_"Pillage and plunder, of course!", Henry exclaimed and lifted his oar up in the air, getting a low chuckle from Killian. He loved his boy being like this, he never expected him to grow up so great, even without a mother or any other female on their side._

_"Pillage and plunder it is! I think I've heard a story of a great treasure more north. Would you like to bring us there?" he asked with a firm voice, pretending to be the Captain of this little raft. He nodded towards the other end of the lake slightly._

_"Aye aye, Captain!" Henry said and pushed the oar into the water, bringing them more north while Killian was watching him with a soft smile on his lips. Being a single father wasn't too bad after all._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, Emma will come in soon ;)


End file.
